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BACKGROUND <br /> Sunflower Hill project <br /> The City financially supported the construction of Sunflower Hill, a 31-unit affordable <br /> rental housing development for residents with special needs, which had an estimated <br /> construction budget of$19.2 million. The City provided a $2,250,000 loan from the <br /> City's Lower Income Housing Fund to Sunflower Hill Irby LLC, a limited partnership for <br /> which SAHA is a part of the partnership structure with Sunflower Hill. The City also <br /> collaborated with Alameda County Housing & Community Development Department <br /> (HCD) to allocate $7,195,844 of the City's Measure Al "Base City Allocation" to the <br /> Sunflower Hill project. Furthermore, the City executed a 75-year ground lease to <br /> allow the project to be constructed on the 1.64-acre dedicated to the City by the <br /> developer of Irby Ranch as an affordable housing site to meet its Inclusionary Zoning <br /> Ordinance (IZO) requirements, as outlined in the Development Agreement and <br /> Affordable Housing Agreement (AHA) for Irby Ranch / PUD-110. <br /> Construction of Sunflower Hill commenced in April 2019, and the project received its <br /> Certificates of Occupancy from the City in September 2020. The project lease up, <br /> which is being administered by SAHA, began in July 2020 and is nearing completion <br /> as all twenty-nine (29) affordable units have been leased up, and qualified households <br /> have begun moving into the development. <br /> DISCUSSION <br /> The Sunflower Hill project was approved as an affordable rental housing development <br /> for residents with special needs with 29 restricted units and 2 manager/staff units. <br /> However, Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA) is requesting the City's <br /> approval to have Sunflower Hill only have one manager's unit and instead voluntarily <br /> permanently restrict the studio unit at 60 percent AMI. <br /> Sunflower Hill originally intended to have a staff person living onsite. However, SAHA <br /> has since contracted with the Regional Center of the East Bay to provide Supportive <br /> Living and Independent Living Services to the Sunflower Hill residents. Consequently, <br /> at its July 15, 2020 Board Meeting, the Sunflower Hill Board of Directors unanimously <br /> agreed that the studio apartment, which had been reserved for use by Sunflower Hill <br /> staff, should be added to the pool of available units for rent to increase the number of <br /> available units for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Sunflower Hill, <br /> through its Residential Programs Manager and in coordination with the on-site Services <br /> Coordinator, will continue to provide on and off-site life-long learning, vocational and life <br /> -skills training including opportunities for connection with the greater community to the <br /> Sunflower Hill residents. <br /> Additionally, releasing the studio staff unit and designating it as a rent restricted unit <br /> would make the project more financially supportable in the long term as the project <br /> would generate additional rent revenue from this studio unit. The table below <br /> illustrates the additional annual rental revenue of about $15,785 that would result <br /> from a studio unit restricted at the 60 percent AMI rent level. <br /> Page 2 of 3 <br />